I Just Want to Enrol in a ‘Fun’ Dance Class

As a studio owner, I get the pleasure of speaking to many people from all different walks of life who have one thing in common, they all want to dance! When either myself or one of my team speak to someone who is enquiring about classes, we often ask them what sort of classes they would like to enrol in. This is quite frequently responded to with, “I just want to enrol in a ‘fun’ dance class.” This then brings me to the question – “What is ‘fun’ dance class?”

‘Fun’ which can be defined as ‘what provides amusement and enjoyment’ (Merriam-Webster, 2017), is clearly a subjective thing. What you deem to be ‘fun’, may not be at all fun in my books. We all have different tastes, even when it comes to dance. Given that recent studies have shown that “synchronising music, which… is pleasing to the brain, and movement – in essence, dance – may constitute a pleasure double play” (Krakauer, 2008), we should all be able to find a class or dance program where we can maximise the ‘fun factor’ on our personal enjoyment scales. We just need to understand that this will likely vary between friends, family members and others in our community.

Unfortunately, in this day and age, the word ‘fun’ is being linked more and more to only the recreational dance classes, whereas the competition classes are getting labelled as ‘serious’. Yes, there is more commitment required to be part of a dance competition team, just as there is to be part of a basketball squad team, however; students who are part of these teams would consider what they do to be ‘fun’ also.

With all of this in mind, my goal as a studio owner is to make sure all our dance families, whether current or potential, can find their ‘fun’ at our studio – whether that be coming to a single Level 2 ballet class or attending 11 performance team classes every week. Obviously, other factors affect class choices too, such as time commitment, work hours, financial position and other extra-curricular activities; however, it is my hope for each and every one of our students that they will find the dance program that best works for them so that they can experience much enjoyment and fulfillment whilst also receiving excellent training in their classes of choice.